In commercial and industrial applications, it is common practice to maintain a sealed environment within an enclosure, such as an electrical chassis. The enclosure may contain fluids and require equalization of internal pressure, draining of excess fluid, or replacing of existing fluid. The enclosure may also require that an external device be removably attached to it without contaminating or disrupting the environment within the enclosure.
It is known to have access at a low point in an enclosure through a drain hole. Any opening in the sealed enclosure permits debris, dust, and other contaminants to enter inside the enclosure and damage the contents therein. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,356,255 and 6,147,298 are examples of devices that include drain holes for bleeding fluid from inside an enclosure. These devices, which are threaded into the enclosure, are relatively large in size and are used in applications where weight and size are not important factors.
A need exists for a threaded device of relatively small size and weight that may be inserted into an enclosure to provide bleeding of fluid from the interior environment. A need also exists for a device that may be inserted into an enclosure for accommodating another device to be removably attached to the enclosure, without contaminating or disrupting the interior environment. This invention addresses these needs.